Abuja – An FCT High Court on Tuesday resumed hearing in the case of alleged extra-judicial killings of six Igbo traders by the police in Abuja in 2005.
The Police officers standing trial in the case were Danjuma Ibrahim, Othman Abdulsalami , Nicholas Zakaria, Ezekiel Acheneje, Baba Emmanuel and Sadiq Salami
They were charged with culpable homicide for alleged killing of the traders; Ifeanyi Ozor, Chinedu Meniru, Isaac Ekene, Paulinus Ogbonna, Anthony Nwodike and Augustina Arebun.
At the resumed hearing of the case before the FCT Chief Judge, Justice Ishaq Bello, one of the defendants, Danjuma Ibrahim, a Deputy Commissioner of Police gave his defence.
Ibrahim, who was led in evidence by his lawyer, Mr Ricky Tarfa, SAN, said he never ordered any policeman to kill the victims.
He said he was dressed in mufti on the fateful day and rode in his personal car.
He denied ever participating in the shooting at the scene of the crime.
During cross examination, the prosecution counsel, Chris Uche SAN, insisted that the defendant used his pistol to kill the victims.
Uche pointedly reminded Danjuma of the earlier evidence by his co-defendants that he killed four of the victims and ordered them to go and “waste’’ the remaining two.
Danjuma however, denied the allegation claiming that the situation at the scene did not warrant him shooting them.
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He insisted that he never gave such instruction.
Justice Bello adjourned the matter till Nov. 11 for further hearing.
NAN reports that the case popularly known as “Apo Six’’ was one of the incidences of extra-judicial killings that attracted public interest and attention in 2005.
The victims were allegedly killed by a team of police officers on patrol while they were driving home from a night out in Abuja. (NAN)